How to Include Built-Ins in Your Home
Make use of your space!
Built-ins are like a part of the house and blend into the wall and decor. They also provide a ton of storage without appearing too bulky and can be tailored to fit the specific needs of a home. Their main characteristic is that they create a smooth transition between spaces.
There's no wrong place to incorporate built-ins. It doesn't matter if it's an office, bedroom, kitchen nook, bathroom, dining room, living room, pantry, or a laundry room. They're very functional and stylish. In this guide, we’ll show you how to include built-ins within your home.
Know Your Budget
First, you want to know how much you want to spend, because the price range varies anywhere from $500 to $10,000. This will help you determine the overall design aesthetic and what elements within your built-in will take priority. Categorize what features you want in your design, determine what you can't live without, and identify what you would love to have if the cost is right and there's money left in the budget. Remember, what you want will most likely cost a little more than what you want to spend.
Before we dive in too deep, let's talk about ways to cut costs. These tips will help you out as you're coming up with your design, allowing you to remain within your budget.
One thing you’ll want to consider when making your budget is what kind of doors you will use on your built-ins. You may choose to do partial overlay, full overlay, or inset cabinet doors. If your design includes drawers, keep in mind that this will raise the cost significantly, so one way to save cost would be to keep drawers to a minimum or use only doors.
Floating shelving is cheaper than permanent shelving, so keep that in mind when designing. Last of all, materials probably have the most significant impact on the project's cost, especially if you're doing it yourself. So if you are going over budget and currently using walnut, maybe swap it out for medium-density fiberboard (MDF).
Do you want to incorporate floating shelving? Do you want adjustable shelves? Do you want storage from floor to ceiling? Do you want back paneling or crown molding? Do you need any electrical work within the cabinets? Will you be mounting a TV in the space? Do you need to hide any cords? Do you want it stained or painted?
As you can see, there are many decisions to be made before the construction of the space. The more you know beforehand, the smoother the project will go and the happier you will be with the finished product.
The last thing you want to do is make modifications after the fact. All of these decisions play into the overall cost of the design. Think about how you use your space, what you've been missing, your needs and design desires, and start sketching some ideas out.
Once you've got your designs down, it's time to start selecting the materials. Depending on the look you're going for, you might need shelves or wood to build shelves, doors, cabinets, and benches. It all depends on what and where you're building.
If you don't want to go full DIY, using preassembled stock cabinets or buying base cabinets is a good start.
Once you determine the design and style you are going for and how much you want to DIY, you’ll be able to select your other materials. For example, will you use plywood for the other aspects of the built-ins? Will you buy premade shelves or make them yourself?
Built-ins not only provide functional storage but also the perfect styling opportunity to make a room complete. When it comes to styling, less is more, like the built-ins themselves. They don’t have to hold books from floor to ceiling, but they absolutely can. If this is not your goal, add a few books, either standing up or lying down. If laid down, add a vase on top for dimension.
Use neutral colors and spice up the space with some greenery. Varying height, texture, and objects will help create layers and depth in the space without adding clutter. Add meaningful decor, such as family pictures and photo albums, to make the space feel more like home.
The beauty of built-ins is that they make every space feel bigger. They easily blend into the home decor rather than standing out, mixing with any design aspect of any home. And bonus – you get a ton of added storage!
Built-ins are not only great for storage and functionality in a home, but they are a great design and focal piece as well. They can add dimension that changes the whole feel of a room.
Jamie & Morgan Molitor of construction2style, are a husband and wife, design + build, content creating team. For over 10 years, they've been tearing houses apart and creating new dream spaces not only for their clients but for themselves; starting off as a DIY home improvement blog and have since moved into a full-service interior residential design & remodeling company. MN-based but nationwide, c2s started from the ground up and now also teach their readers how they can do it too through different marketing strategies. Whether you want to DIY with their home improvement or marketing tutorials online or hire them to completely do it for you, they're an open book and here to help!
